"I am moving my two horses to a pen that had cane bailed out of it...."

It has some regrowth back but its not real tall. Would this be bad for our horses? Thanks

Bill Schurg's Answer:

TWhite:

I would not expect this to be a problem and am not aware of any ill effects associated with a horse eating small amounts of new growth.

Dr. Schurg

"I am a racehorse trainer in Marianna Fl. ..."

I have been in the racehorse industry for 22 years now. We have always been preached to about how important it is to stay on a regular feeding schedule. How important is this and what are the effects of irregular feeding?

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Chad:

The horse becomes very dependent on you and I for their feed. Their expectation of feeding time becomes important because some horses not fed regularly will become stressed and with that anxiety they could increase their risks of things like colic. Additionally, some horses would develop behavioral problems like stall walking, kicking, biting etc. I don't believe that a 15 or 30 minutes difference in feeding time will be significantly problem oriented but many horses biological clock is more accurate than ours.

Best of luck.

Dr. Schurg

"Are there Equine Nutritionist certification programs? oris it necessary to get a MS or PhD? Thanks!..."

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Corrie:

I am not aware of any Equine Nutritionist certification programs in general. The American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists does have a section where one can take a very comprehensive examination to become Board Certified in Animal Nutrition. People who do this would likely have at the very least a M.S. and more likely a Ph.D. in Animal or Equine Nutrition.

Hope this is helpful.

Dr. Schurg

"I have a 2yr Arabian that will not gain weight no matter what I do she always has a cold nose and legs...."

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Michelle:

I would think your first order of business is to have your veterinarian do a complete and comprehensive evaluation of this horse to ascertain that no major health care considerations are creating the problems. Once a clean bill of health is obtained, you need to evaluate what you are feeding by having the hay analyzed to see what nutrients it contains. The results of that evaluation will allow you to create a supplementation plan that can more closely provide nutrients needed by this horse and start the process of improving weight.

Best of luck.

Dr.Schurg

"I have a 6 year old riding pony he has come down with laminitis for the 1st time. ..."

Hello Bill,

I have a 6 year old riding pony he has come down with laminitis for the 1st time. We are lucky and seem to have caught it early. I am worried about what to feed him so that we can avoid this happening again. I would appreciate any advice you would be able to give.

Trudy.

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Trudy:

Probably you will want to limit feed this pony primarily a grass based diet. You should try to get an estimate of body weight and feed no more than 1.5% of body weight daily. If your pony is over weight then you will likely need to feed even less daily. If you need to feed any type of grain supplement to incorporate other nutrients you should consider products that contain high levels of fat and high levels of soluble fiber. These feeds many times work well for horses that have had previous problems with laminitis.

Best of luck.

Dr. Schurg

"I recently asked the animal nutrition professor his thoughts on feed...."

I am currently studying Animal Science at Western Kentucky University. I have always been very interested in Equine Nutrition! I recently asked the animal nutrition professor his thoughts on feed.

I have two horses, both Paso Finos, one is a 2(1/2)yrold, stud colt, about 700-800lbs and the other is a 11 yr old gelding, about 900lbs. They have been on pasture, with a Dumor mineral/supplement block, mineral block and salt block. The occational horse cookie, and every

few days or so, when Im out there, they get about2-3 cups of "horse and calf" mixed feed from the mill. The grass is pretty eaten down now, and they are on good grass hay round bale, with the same supplements. To the point. I asked the Professor what he would recomend feeding

them, that would be high in protein, yet low in fat, preferably no corn (I don't beleive animals or us can truely digest corn). He recomended Soy hull pellets, they are inexpensive and have a good fiber and protein content. I also am partial to feeding black oil sunflower seeds. They have fat for the coat, and maintaining weight, but don't over fatten or cause excess energy. I might add that they randomly (1-2times a week) get a biotin supp. and sometimes a squirt of Healthy Coat.

Any opinions on this?

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Corrie:

The use of the soy hull pellets is a very acceptable way to go. They contain nearly the same energy value of whole oats but have great soluble fiber content. The protein content and available amino acids is likely intermediate to some other products which supply greater quality and quantity of protein. A more consistent approach to feeding supplements rather than the every few days would likely improve your over all feeding management plan as well.

Best of luck.

Dr. Schurg

"Hello, I have two elderly horses. One is a 42-year-old Appaloosa mare (Ginger), and the other is a 35-year-old Walkaloosa gelding (Cody)..."

Which is the most fattening? grass/alfalfa mix hay oats (Sprout brand) broodmare/foal feed I am trying to figure out a good balance between all three for my 6 year old mare - she is still nursing her 4 month old colt - he is grazing, eating grain and hay as well. My vet said he wouldn't like to see her any heavier.

Thanks for your help!

Bill Schurg's Answer:

April,

Horses that are the age you have are very challenging to both put and keep weight on. Many times you will be able to get some rib covering but due to age the backbone area may never return to where you would like it to be. The use of moist alfalfa pellets along with additions of rice bran (1-3 cups/day) and even some soaked beet pulp may be ways to improve weight gain. I like the use of soaked flaxseed poured onto the alfalfa pellets, rice bran and beet pulp as well to increase energy density. Some horses may not like the mixture and at the age your horses are you have to try several things to find what they will consume and begin to show benefit. I am not familiar with the Allegra and Millenium Gold products but I suspect they may have some of the ingredients that I have suggested and I would indicate to continue their use. The addition of the soaked pellets for Ginger may be useful and not complicate your feeding program. It sounds like you are doing the right things and these horses are lucky to have this great attention.

Best of luck,

Dr Schurg

"Recently her legs have been filling up - whether she's in or out, and the last couple of days or so, her pasterns have been a little filled too...."

Hi Bill

I have a 16 month old Irish filly who is currently around 14.2, I am hoping she'll make about 16.1. She's fed on yearling cubes, approx 10 hours a day turnout on good grass and hay over night. Recently her legs have been filling up - whether she's in or out, and the last couple of days or so, her pasterns have been a little filled too. Do you think this is a feed related issue or a growth problem? She's sound and pain free. I look forward to hearing from you shortly! Many thanks, and kind regards

Sarah

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Sarah:

You do not indicate if you have any other exercise program in place but I expect that most of what you are seeing is related to growth rate and associated stress to lower legs through daily exercise and movement and or imbalance of nutrients (or both). If she is playing hard in the pasture (running, stopping and turning) she may be have some stress relationships associated with concussion. Also, you may want to look into the balance of the nutrients being provided by your cubes, grass and hay. It may be that she is not getting all the nutrients in the balance needed to sustain growth at this time of her life. I would likely have a veterinary check done to make sure there is no health care associations to the swelling you are seeing and secondly have the feed analyzed to determine how close the requirements for critical nutrients are from what you are offering. Best of luck.

Dr. Schurg

"..every year around this same time she drops alot of weight. This year is really bad..."

My quarter horse is 16 yoa and every year around this same time she drops alot of weight. This year is really bad. You can see her rib cage and her backbone up by her withers. We have dewormed her about two weeks ago and she does not look like she is putting her weight back on. What do you recommend I try.

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Shawna:

The combination of heat/humidity and insects along with summertime activity increases may all have an impact on your horse dropping some weight. You should always be proactive in that place the horse in maybe a bit higher body condition prior to the summer so that any drop will not be too harsh. I would indicate that if this horse is on pasture you may need to supplement with added hay and some grain. If you are feeding hay currently you need to check to make sure it is good quality. If not get a better product. If you are feeding grass hay alone you may need to try some alfalfa and/or some grain combinations. Your horse should be eating at least 2% of it's body weight each day in total feed. The critical thing about weight gain will be to supply additional calories to this horse by increasing feed either more hay or adding grain. The time frame of improvement will depend on how far your horse needs to go to get back to what you deem normal condition. But generally a minimum of 45 days to 120 days may be needed to see significant improvement after slowly adapting your horse to a more calorie rich diet. Best of luck.

Dr. Schurg

"I am a undergraduate at Colorado State University. I am researching a career as a Equine Nutritionist..."

I am researching a career as a Equine Nutritionist. I was wondering if you could answer a few questions. Thank you so much.

1) What is a typical week like?

2) What kind of education/experience is required to be successful?

3) What are the pros and cons of your career?

4) Do you have any advice for me?

Thank you again

Amy H

Bill Schurg's Answer:

Amy,

1) What is a typical week like?
Since I am a university professor and a nutritionist, my work week is filled with teaching 3-4 three unit semester classes in the fall and 1 3 unit class in the spring. A general animal nutrition class and an equine nutrition class. I spend about 3+ hours in preparation for each class and then teach each on MWF. In answering questions both on line and in office hours I spend about 2 hours each day. Further as a resource person with Extension and Outreach appointments I handle questions nearly daily. Seminars and clinics are given many times each year. So, in summary my average work week is about 60-70 hours of instruction and outreach.

2) What kind of education/experience is required to be successful?
In my career path, it was important to attain a doctorate in the field of Animal/Equine Nutrition but many of my former students have completed M.S. degrees in animal/equine nutrition and have been hired in Industry related nutrition jobs both in sales and technical service position.

3) What are the pros and cons of your career?
The pros are great flexibility in my schedule most of the time while still have adequate structure. I deal with animals and people daily. Sometimes the long hours and less than adequate pay is frustrating.

4) Do you have any advice for me?
If you want to get into the nutrition area, make sure you take and achieve success in science based courses. Especially chemistry and biochemistry, anatomy and physiology and take as many animal nutrition classes as possible. If you have the opportunity to do an internship with a feed company that too would be very desirable.

Best of luck.

Dr. Schurg